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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 8, 2012

IDES Offices Closed Nov. 12 to Observe Veterans Day Customers Should Certify; Services Available on Internet

CHICAGO - The offices of the Illinois Department of Employment Security (IDES) will close Monday, Nov. 12, in observance of Veterans Day. All services will be available on the IDES website. Regular office hours of 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m., Monday-Friday, will resume Tuesday, Nov. 13.

Originally called Armistice Day, the day first recognized when fighting ended in World War I on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month of 1918. The Treaty of Versailles, which officially ended the hostilities, was signed June 28, 1919. President Wilson proclaimed the first commemoration in 1919 and asked for a brief suspension of business at 11 a.m. that day. In 1926, Congress recognized the end of World War I and stated it believed it appropriate that the country recognize the date “with thanksgiving and prayer and exercises designed to perpetuate peace through good will and mutual understanding between nations…”

Congress made Nov. 11 a federal holiday in 1938 and called it Armistice Day. In 1954, after World War II required the largest mobilization of armed forces in the country’s history, Congress replaced Armistice with Veterans Day. In 1968, Congress moved the celebrations of four holidays, including Veterans Day, to a Monday to encourage travel and recreation over a three-day weekend. The Monday observance began in 1971 and was considered by many to be confusing and by some to be inappropriate. In 1975 the celebration was returned to Nov. 11, effective in 1978. Illinois declared Nov. 11 to be a state holiday in 1921. It also switched from Armistice to Veterans in 1955.

Although IDES offices will be closed, services will be available at www.ides.illinois.gov. Workers can apply for first-time unemployment benefits, certify for benefits which is necessary to receive payment, and switch the method of payment to direct deposit. Because Monday is a holiday, the availability of some benefit payments might be delayed. The IDES does not determine holidays.

The IDES supports economic stability by administering unemployment benefits, collecting business contributions to fund those benefits, connecting employers with qualified job seekers, and providing economic information to assist career planning and economic development. It does so through nearly 45 offices across the state, including the Illinois workNet Centers.